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Work bans by nurses at third WA hospital

Nurses at Fremantle Hospital plan to impose work bans on Wednesday, joining colleagues at two other hospitals as they press their pay claim with the WA government.

The Australian Nursing Federation was originally seeking a 20 per cent wage rise over three years, but members who attended a union meeting at Royal Perth Hospital on Monday said they would accept a minimum 15 per cent increase over the same period.

The state government has offered public sector nurses a three per cent per year wage rise - equivalent to inflation - and a further 1.25 per cent per annum if they give up certain conditions of employment.

Nurses at Royal Perth Hospital adopted the work bans on Monday, followed by Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital on Tuesday.

While the wrangling continues with the Health Department of Western Australia, they will not be doing any work that does not directly involve the care of a patient, including removing rubbish, cleaning toilets and bathrooms, and moving medical equipment in and out of theatre rooms.

They say they've been forced to do work that would normally be done by orderlies and cleaners - positions that have been cut back.

ANF state secretary Mark Olson said the work bans would slow down the operations of any hospital where they were implemented, suggesting more were in store.

The first casualty would be the state government's rule that patients are treated and cleared from emergency departments within four hours, he said.

Mr Olson said the rule relied heavily on the goodwill of nurses.

"It will be impossible for hospitals to continue to get patients out of the emergency departments within the designated four hours," he said.

"For that to happen, nurses have to clean rooms and equipment, clean operating theatres, move patients, move furniture and equipment or collect medications and fill out paperwork for patients being discharged - all of which will no longer be happening at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital after today."

Mr Olson called on the WA government to "show some respect and make nurses a decent offer".

Public sector nurses will hold a mass meeting on February 18 - the first in 12 years, Mr Olson said - to discuss taking further measures to push their case.

"It will start to have an effect on the theatre list," he said.

"The (health) minister (Kim Hames) is hoping if he ignores it, it will go away."

4 comments so far

Whats the Governments reasoning? Pay 'em for Christ sake!! ........they are worth it and they deserve it...our Pollies,on the other hand,never knock back a handsome payrise and are not worth it and dont deserve it. Wheres the honesty in that? Thankyou. ...

Commenter

Jack Sparrow

Location

Perth

Date and time

February 05, 2013, 6:01PM

It's about time our resource rich state recognised the work of the people who provide services that aren't attached to the mining sector. It's becoming financially tougher for the workers of this state that provide essential services to our community to be able to live in the community they service..i guess we could become a state of purely fifo workers, then fifo our non mining workers in from other areas where they can afford to live. Give them a pay rise, they deserve it.

Commenter

treehugger

Location

Fremantle

Date and time

February 06, 2013, 12:21AM

Sack them, and bring in foreigners.

Commenter

Kane

Date and time

February 06, 2013, 6:46AM

Nurses would have to be among the most underpaid professionals in our community, yet we literally can't live without them. Come on Barnett, do the right thing and cough up. I'm sure you can use cheaper fittings at Elizabeth Quay to pay for it!